By the time Tanaka's tenure with the Yankees ended, he had thrown more than 1,000 innings and played a key part in the Baby Bomber playoff runs that began in 2017.
Tanaka, in the first grade, was playing with his brother near their elementary school in Itami. Nearby, the baseball team was practicing and Tanaka wandered over to watch. Mitsutaka Yamasaki, the coach, asked Tanaka if he'd like to take some swings. Tanaka, of course, immediately looked like a natural.
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